High-Rise Building Wash-Downs & Pressure Cleaning

Most buildings should be washed down at least once every 12 months, which is also what most paint, glazing and facade manufacturers require to keep their warranties valid. Buildings close to the ocean, major roads, construction zones or heavy vegetation collect salt and soot faster and often need more frequent cleaning. We'll help set a schedule based on your building's actual exposure rather than a one-size-fits-all program.

Not when it's done correctly. We run wide-fan nozzles that deliver around 500 psi at the surface, in line with Dulux and other paint manufacturers' maintenance guidelines, which lifts grime, salt and mould without stripping coatings. The danger comes from high pressure with the wrong nozzle, which is exactly what we avoid. Areas with loose coatings, cracked render or failed sealants may be skipped and reported rather than blasted.

Every building is different, so there's no flat rate, and anyone quoting one sight unseen is guessing. The price is driven by factors specific to your building: its height and the number of rope drops required, how complex the facade is to access and the anchor layout, egress from the drops and where the pressure cleaners can be staged, balcony drainage, how dirty the building is, the elements installed on the facade, and the final scope you select. A tall building with a small footprint prices very differently to a low, sprawling one, so a simple per-level figure tells you almost nothing. Whatever the size, a wash-down costs a fraction of a repaint, and a regular program usually pays for itself by extending coating life. Send us the building details and we'll assess it properly and give you a firm, tailored quote.

Yes. Our IRATA-certified rope access technicians abseil the facade, so there's no scaffolding or swing stages required. That means faster mobilisation, less disruption to residents, and a lower overall cost.

It depends on the agreed scope, which we set out clearly in your quote. A wash-down may cover painted walls, render, concrete, balcony slab edges, balustrades, architectural features and window frames. Ground-level areas, balcony floors, detailed external window cleaning and defect reporting are listed separately in the quote so everyone knows exactly what's included.

We usually start on the rooftop or highest areas in scope, then work the facade top-down based on wind and weather, and finish with ground-floor areas if requested. Where possible we set the machines up on the rooftop too, as it causes the least noise and disruption for your building and neighbours. Final setup depends on water access, power, hose lengths and the building's height-safety system.

Bring everything inside: furniture, pot plants, cushions, washing and electrical items, because everything on a balcony gets wet. Windows and doors should be fully closed. We can work around large items like tables, but the clean isn't as thorough there. If a balcony is heavily obstructed, holds delicate items, or can't be safely accessed, we'll photograph it and skip it.

Balconies should have working drains before we start. If a spitter pipe or outlet is clogged with minor surface debris we'll try to clear it with the water pressure; a blocked internal drain is outside our scope unless agreed. Where drainage is poor we'll push the water over the hob as best we can, but a fine silt can be left behind for residents to sweep up. We'll skip a balcony where poor drainage risks flooding the unit.

In most cases we'll skip that balcony. Blasting pet waste down the side of the building isn't professional and isn't fair to the occupants below. Please have any animal waste removed before the scheduled clean.

Our team photographs it and works around it rather than blasting material that's already loose. Existing defects often become more visible once the dirt is gone, which is normal. Every photo is compiled into a report and sent to you at the end of the job so you have a clear record.

We hose off the glass and frames as we go, but a rinse isn't the same as a detailed clean and can leave water marks. For the best finish we recommend a separate squeegee or purified-water window clean after the wash-down, generally on a different day, so wash-down runoff doesn't blow back onto freshly cleaned glass. It's your call on scope.

We always rinse ground-floor elevations affected by runoff. A detailed clean of ground-floor units, paths, entries and awnings depends on the agreed scope, so list those in the quote if you want them done properly.

Our machines run at around 2000 psi at the unit, but pressure drops through the hose and our wide-fan nozzles, so the pressure actually hitting the facade is closer to 500 psi, in line with Dulux and other manufacturers' maintenance guidelines. We adjust to suit the coating, substrate and contamination, and use test areas or lower pressure on delicate surfaces.

It depends on the building height, footprint, facade complexity, contamination level, access system and scope, and weather and wind can affect productivity on rope access work. We'll give you a realistic timeframe with your quote.

Yes. As we work we photograph up to 50 visible defects and areas of concern, included in your price, record them through our custom app, organise them into a spreadsheet and send it at the end of the job. It's an indicative record to help you flag areas for a closer look, not a comprehensive facade inspection or engineering assessment. Where you need that level of detail, we can provide a separately scoped facade inspection and defect report.

Yes, and it usually saves you money. Because access is the expensive part, a wash-down can be coordinated with window cleaning, facade inspections, sealant replacement, minor concrete or render repairs, painting, water leak investigations and height-safety inspections, so you're not paying to mobilise the same access twice.